Mary Anne's New Volunteering Job
by Elizabeth8289
Summary: Mary Anne saw an AD to volunteer at a church event, so she went for it. Meanwhile, the Spiers had an exchange student named Meredith Sousa from London, England.
1. BSC Introduction

Baby-Sitters Club belongs to Ann M. Martin

It was a very quiet Saturday afternoon. My dad, the lawyer, had jury duty from one to three p.m. My stepmom, Sharon Schafer took her parents out for a movie and dinner. My stepsister, Dawn was watching the Barretts from one to five p.m. My adopted brother, Carlos had a basketball game until around three pm. I had my cat, Tigger with me.

I'm Mary Anne Spier I'm 13 and a resident of Stoneybrook, CT. I'm an eighth grader at Stoneybrook Middle School. My dad raised me after my mother died many years ago of cancer. I hardly remember her. He ended up dating Sharon who was his old girlfriend from high school since she moved here from California after the divorce with her kids; Dawn, who's my age, and Jeff, he's younger than Dawn and I. Jeff moved back to California.

A year later, Sharon and Dad got married, so he, Tigger, and I moved from Bradford Court to Burnt Hill Road to live with Sharon and Dawn. It took me a while to get used to it because my two friends and I were neighbors for most of our lives.

My best friend, Kristy Thomas lived next door to me and we were across the street from Claudia Kishi. Kristy had an interesting life; her family was average until her dad left when she was about six or seven. She has three brothers; Charlie, Sam, and David Michael.

Mrs. Thomas dated and married the millionaire, Watson Brewer last summer. That was when the whole family moved across town to live with him. So now Kristy has two stepsiblings; Karen and Andrew who visit every other month. Plus an adopted baby sister, Emily Michelle. Then Nannie moved in to help out. A few additions are a cat, a dog, a rat, a hermit crab, and two fish.

Claudia's family is smaller. She only has an older sister, Janine the genius. Claudia was able to get C averages. She enjoys art. The two things her parents disapprove are junk food and Nancy Drew books, but they're the things Claudia loves. Her grandmother had always lived with them, but passed away of a stroke not long ago. We all liked her, but Claudia and I were especially close to Mimi.

The phone rang as I answered.

"Hello," I said.

"Hi, it's Ed," said Uncle Ed.

"Hi, Uncle Ed, how are you?" I asked.

Ed is a good friend of Sharon's and I liked him when I first met him and I get to call him Uncle Ed.

"Fine thanks. Is Sharon home?" asked Uncle Ed.

"She's too busy to come to the phone. May I take a message?" I asked.

"Can you tell her that I called?" asked Uncle Ed.

"Certainly," I said.

"Thanks," replied Uncle Ed.

"Not a problem," I said. "Bye."

"Bye, dear," said Uncle Ed as we hung up.

I decided to have a snack and I made a peanut butter sandwich. It was natural—no salt, no sugar. I don't care. It's better than any other health foods that Dawn and Sharon like. Neither of them will touch sugar, sweets, or meat.

-  
After I had my snack, I headed to my room and got my magazine. I enjoy reading them especially sixteen with my favorite movie star, Cam Geary. He reminds of my boyfriend, Logan Bruno. He has blonde hair and blue eyes. I liked Logan since he first moved here from Kentucky and we met when eighth grade started. He's in Stacey McGill's homeroom and English class. He has this wonderful accent. He lives down the street from me. He's the oldest of three kids; a sister, Kerry and a brother, Hunter.

Stacey moved here at the beginning of seventh grade from New York City when her father was transferred here. Then after eighth grade started, the McGills were transferred back there. The next thing we knew; Mr. and Mrs. McGill got divorced and Stacey moved back here with her mother. Like Dawn, Stacey doesn't touch sugar or sweets, but has another reason. She's a diabetic. No real junk food, just crackers, rice cakes, chips, and diet soda. She also takes insulin everyday and sees a doctor a lot. Otherwise, she could be very sick.

She lives behind Mallory Pike. Mallory, like Kristy, has a large family: seven siblings! Jordan, Adam, and Byron are triplets, Vanessa, Nicky, Margo, and Claire. Mallory loves to read and wants to be a writer. She's eleven and in sixth grade. She wears glasses and clear braces. She loves horses. Her parents treat her like a kid even though she's mature for her age and has even gotten her ears pierced.

Mallory's best friend, Jessi Ramsey is a lot like her. She also likes horses. Her parents treat her the same way. She's eleven and in sixth grade as well. Like Logan, Jessi's the oldest of three kids; a sister, Becca and a brother, Squirt. She's African-American. Jessi likes to dance and takes dancing lessons in Stamford.


	2. Hello, Meredith Sousa

At three p.m., the mail truck came by. After it left, I got the mail and went to the table. Seeing a few bills for both Dad and Sharon, I put them in a separate pile. Then I saw an AD with my name on it—sweet! I brought it up to my room. In my room, I was reading through the AD to see if it there's anything interesting. Then I saw a headline that said help wanted: Volunteers were needed at the local church. If interested, call Linda Hall. I circled the name and number.

"I'm home!" a voice was heard.

I came out of my room and noticed Carlos standing in the hallway.

"Hi, Carlos, how was your game?" I asked.

"Awesome. We won twenty-eight to twenty," replied Carlos happily.

"Terrific!" I exclaimed in my excited voice.

"Thanks," smiled Carlos.

Then Dad came home.

"Hi, the mail's on the table for you, Dad," I said.

"Thank you, honey," replied Dad.

"How did jury duty go?" I asked.

"The murderer, who killed his parents and brother, will be locked up for life. No bail," said Dad.

"He deserves it," said Carlos as I agreed.

Sharon came home twenty minutes later.

"Hi, Sharon, Uncle Ed called earlier and asked for you. He wants you to call him back," I said.

"Okay. Thanks for telling me," smiled Sharon as she went upstairs to change out of her work clothes.

At dinner, my stomach was hurting me a bit, but I felt better after I had TUMS. The next day, it was starting to hurt me again, so Dad let me stay home from school he didn't want me to feel worse. I don't blame him. I skipped lunch and dinner since my stomach wasn't well enough.

The following day, I felt much better. I only had tuna and water for lunch, since I wasn't that hungry at all. I was still recovering.

After school, Sharon came home early with a visitor.

"Mary Anne, this is Meredith Sousa from London, England. She'll be staying with us as an exchange student. My co-worker, Amanda Vipers, was planning to take her in, but her son was diagnosed with leukemia yesterday, so she asked me to take over," explained Sharon.

"Hi," said Meredith.

"Hi, nice to meet you," I smiled and shook her hand.

"Nice to meet you, too," said Meredith.

"How long does an exchange student stay with a family?" I asked.

"About ten to twelve months," replied Sharon. "It's a pretty long time."

"Sweet! I love that idea!" I exclaimed.

"I know," agreed Meredith.

"We're not sure which room she'll be sharing," said Sharon.

"I like the music off when I do homework," Meredith told us.

"So do I," I replied.

"Sounds like a perfect match to share your room," said Meredith.

"Let's go unpack your stuff now," I said as I went to pick up her suitcase and went upstairs to my room.

"You have a nice room," said Meredith.

"Thanks. This was a guest room before I had this room," I replied. "I can put my clothes in my closet and you can put yours in my drawer."

"Sounds good," said Meredith who liked the idea.

That's what we did and were done within ten to twenty minutes. My closet was like a walk-in, so it's easy for me to walk in and out of it, and I can get dressed in it, too.

"So, do you have any siblings?" I asked.

"Yes. It's just me, my mom, and my ten-year-old sister, Kara. My dad died three years ago," replied Meredith.

"Does your sister remember him?" I asked.

"She does. She was only seven at that time. I was heartbroken when he passed away," said Meredith.

"I barely remember my own mother. She died when I was a baby," I said as I explained how I have a stepfamily.

"Wow! That's cool," said Meredith.

"I know. Dawn and I were best friends, even before we became stepsisters," I told her.

"That sounds nice," replied Meredith.

"It sure is," I said.


	3. Meredith Meets the BSC Members

After dinner, we were in my room to continue talking.

"I have a best friend who just got leukemia not long ago," I said.

"Really?" Meredith asked as I nodded.

"Yes. I got upset about it. See, it all started when we visit New York City where the Willis family moved from. We visit there every other weekend. We were at a fair while we were there playing a few games when Kayla collapsed. Thank god she lived. It was just her appendix. Then the doctors said that there's something else that is wrong and I got very upset," I explained.

"Gosh, that's terrible," said Meredith.

"I know. I stopped going to fairs ever since to get rid of that memory," I said.

"That's a shame," said Meredith.

"Then a week or two later, we had to rush Kayla to the hospital in NYC while her sister stayed here with me. That was when her family found out that she had leukemia. It was the second time that she had leukemia," I continued.

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Meredith.

"Thanks. Sometimes I don't always talk about it because it upsets me often," I told her.

"That's okay. You're brave when you talked about it like I was when I told you about my dad's death," said Meredith.

"That's true," I said as we laughed.

The next day, at school, I had permission to bring Meredith to the office so she can be signed up. She's in my every class including my homeroom. In Gym, I brought her to Kristy.

"Kristy, this is Meredith Sousa. She arrived here from London, England yesterday when I got home," I said.

"Hi, Meredith, nice to meet you," said Kristy.

"Same here," said Meredith. "I'm with her family."

"Kristy is one of my best friends while Dawn is the other," I said. "You can meet the rest of my friends at lunch."

"Alright," replied Meredith.

"Meredith is in our social studies class," I told Kristy.

At lunch, Meredith, Kristy, and I joined the others.

"Claudia and Stacey, this is Meredith from London, England. She's staying with my family," I said.

"Hi," Meredith greeted the girls.

"Hi," Claudia and Stacey greeted back.

"Hi," Kaylee Willis said as she sat next to us.

"Hi, Kaylee," We said.

Kayla showed up, too, to join us.

"Kayla, Kaylee, we have a new student. That's Meredith," said Stacey.

"Hi. I'm from London, England," replied Meredith.

"Kayla and Kaylee are twins," I told her.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you," said Meredith.

"Same here. Kayla and I have six other siblings," Kaylee told Meredith.

"Wow!" exclaimed Meredith in her low voice.

"I know. We have another set of twins, Daniel James, who's nickame is D.J., and Mario, one set of triplets; Robert, Roberta, and Berta, and the youngest member is Mary Jane, who's nickname is M.J. We came here from New York City," said Kayla.

"Cool!" exclaimed Meredith.


	4. The News about Logan and Mrs Bruno

After school, Meredith and I walked home together along with Dawn.

"I can't wait to show Dad the AD to volunteer at Stoneybrook Church later tonight!" I exclaimed with an excitement.

"Are you sure he'll let you?" asked Dawn who was concerned about that.

"Of course he would and besides, you have to be thirteen or older to do so," I replied.

I didn't bother to ask her why she thought that way. At home, I was doing my homework before working on my essay from my history class. We have to write about what London was like in the old days. That's an easy thing to do, so I'll do that. They certainly had wars way back then and they had blackouts so they'll know what to do in case anything happens there to be safe.

I, sort of, started it in the study hall before the bell rang for the last class. I was only on my first paragraph at that time. The teacher will tell us what would happen tomorrow during class. I also could feel my stomach flip-flop as usual, but ignored it while continuing to do my essay.

While I was doing the essay, my stomach gurgled, which made me feeling nauseous, so I took a short break by getting a drink of water. I, kind of, felt better after that. Why kind of? Because twenty minutes later, my stomach gurgled again. I hate it when it makes me feel nauseous. I decided to lie down for awhile before I continue to do the essay.

I don't what time I feel asleep because at five pm, Dawn came in and said, "It's almost time for the BSC meeting."

"I don't feel like going today. My stomach's been hurting me since I was trying to do my essay. Can you tell Kristy that and can you take over for me?" I asked my sister.

"Okay. Not a problem," smiled Dawn.

"Thanks. I just don't feel like getting sick there if my stomach keeps gurgling because it makes me nauseous," I said.

"I don't blame you at all," said Dawn.

Dawn left for the meeting.

At Claudia's, Dawn arrived just before Kristy did.

"Where's Mary Anne today?" asked Claudia while eating cheetos.

"She wasn't feeling well. She told me her stomach was bugging her, so she didn't want to come in case she gets sick here," replied my sister. "I just need to tell Kristy when she gets here and Mary Anne asked to take over as well."

"We're in luck. Kristy might be a bit late. She's helping Mallory baby-sitting the Barretts and the Dewitts. They won't be back until about five-twenty pm," said Claudia.

"But she could be making it here just in time since they're not too far away from here," said Dawn.

That was when Stacey and Jessi arrived. Dawn was right about Kristy because she and Mallory came at five twenty-four pm.

"Boy, remind me not to baby-sit the Dewitts again. They can be so rude to the poor Barretts kids," said Mallory.

"Tell me about it," agreed Kristy.

"You can handle the Dewitts next time we both baby-sit there and I'll do the Barretts," said Mallory.

"It's a deal since I know how to handle tough kids," said Kristy.

"Where's Mary Anne?" asked Mallory after noticing Dawn without me.

"She's at home. She had an upset stomach and didn't want to take a chance of being sick here," Dawn told the junior officer.

"Oh," said Mallory.

"Thanks for letting me know," said Kristy.

"She asked me to tell you," said Dawn.

When the meeting began, the phone starting ringing and Claudia answered.

"Hello. Baby-Sitters Club at your service," said Claudia. "Oh, hi, Mrs. Newton. Saturday afternoon from one to three pm. Of course, we'll get back to you."

She hung up and told Dawn and she checked.

"The only ones who are free are Jessi and Stacey," said Dawn.

"You can take it, Jessi, since it's the afternoon job," said Stacey.

"Ok, I'll do it," said Jessi.

Claudia called Mrs. Newton back to tell her who would be sitting for her two young kids, Jamie and Lucy.

Later, at home, my stomach was getting worse and I've been taking TUMS to make it better. I was sweating, too. Dawn noticed that when she returned from Claudia's.

"Are you feeling alright? You don't look too good," said Dawn who was worried about me.

"It's my stomach; it's been hurting me even more. Thank god I've been taking TUMS," I replied.

"That's good to hear," smiled my sister. "I just spotted Mom making dinner."

"I saw her already; she's making soup for me," I told her.

At six-thirty pm, Sharon called, "Dinner's ready, girls!"

We came down and I was having soup.

"Are you ok? Is all you're having, honey?" asked Dad.

I nodded and said, "My stomach's been hurting me, so I'm just having soup."

"Oh, okay. That's fine," said Dad.

After I had dinner, Dad excused me from helping Dawn out since I wasn't well enough. I went to lie down in my room.

I didn't feel better until before I went to bed for ten pm.

"So, you're showing your dad the AD tomorrow?" asked Meredith.

"Yes. We're having a father-daughter day because he's off," I replied getting into bed.

"That's good. Are you excited or nervous about showing it to him?" asked Meredith.

"I'm a little excited," I replied.

"That's good. Volunteering at any place sounds nice to do, especially for any special events," said Meredith as she got into her bed.

"I agree," I smiled. "At least I'll be comfortable being with the others without being shy around them. That's the only way I can talk to them."

"That's true," agreed Meredith.

An hour later, I was asleep when the phone suddenly rings. Two minutes later, Dad came up and entered as he sat next to me. He was scaring me.

"Who was that?" I asked.

"That was Mrs. Bruno," began Dad. "Logan got hurt in a car crash that just happened twenty minutes ago."

"What?" I exclaimed in a shocked voice. "Is he okay?"

"He'll be just fine; he injured his right leg that's all. Mrs. Bruno was involved, but she's not hurt and she's very lucky," answered Dad. "She's still with him at the hospital and you can go visit him there tomorrow after school."

"Okay, good," I said.

"He also might need surgery before he goes home," continued Dad.

That got me more worried than ever.

"They'll need to take an x-ray first to make sure his leg would be well enough without an operation," said Dad as I got relieved.

I almost didn't sleep for about two to three hours. At three am, I must have a bad dream about what Dad told me because I woke up after the car hit a pole way before our street. I sat up in bed while I was breathing heavily.

I got up and went downstairs to the kitchen to get something to drink. Dad must if heard me because he came down to see if I was okay.

"Are you alright, honey?" asked Dad.

I nodded while having some water. "I just had a nightmare that's all. Even though I'm glad Logan's okay, I'm just worried about him."

"It'll be alright," said Dad while he was comforting me.

We just talked for awhile until it was four am. It took me twenty minutes for me to go back to sleep. Unfortunately, three hours later at our wake up time for school, I woke up after I had that same dream. Meredith was already up and dressed before I did. I came down while I was still in my nightgown feeling tired when Dad noticed that.

"Are you okay? You look tired," said Dad.

"That dream came back," I replied.

"It'll be alright." Dad said comforting me. "Are you going to be okay to go to school or do you feel too tired?"

"I'm just tired and I wouldn't able to concentrate in any of my classes if that thought of Logan wouldn't go away," I answered.

"I don't blame you. I'll tell Dawn to let your homeroom teacher know," said Dad.

"Okay," I replied.

That's what he did. Both Dad and Sharon had to work plus Dad's not off until Friday. Which is fine by me so I can sleep for awhile. Luckily, Sharon would be home early today at one pm.

I also realized I haven't show Dad the AD yet. That's okay, though, I can show it to him later tonight if I'm not too tired. Maybe that'd keep my mind off about worrying about Logan. I'll also probably go see Logan later on after I sleep for a bit. I did manage to sleep for two or more hours.

When I woke up, I felt better enough to go visit him at the hospital. I got dressed and had lunch. I called Dad to let him know I was heading out to see Logan and he said it was fine by him. After we talked, I headed out to the hospital. When I got there, I spotted Mr. Bruno waiting for me.

"Hi, Mr. Bruno, how's Logan?" I asked.

"He's doing fine. Only he's getting a surgery done a bit because his leg wasn't moving right," said Mr. Bruno. "He was awake this morning and he could barely move it, so they're doing it now to get it out of the way."

"Oh. At least, Logan is okay," I said in a relieved voice.

"I agree with you," said Mr. Bruno.

Twenty minutes later, the doctor came to us and said, "The surgery is success. Logan's in the recovery room and is still asleep. There could be a chance of him being on crutches for about a month."

"Okay," said Mr. Bruno. "May we please see him?"

"Certainly," replied Dr. Wellington as he brought us to see Logan.

I'm glad Logan is fine. I love him very much and I don't want to lose my boyfriend because I'd be heartbroken. Luckily, he had just woken up when we came in to see him.

"Mary Anne," said Logan.

"Hi, Logan, Dad told me you were in an accident last night when your mother called him," I told him. "I'm glad you're okay now."

"So am I," smiled Logan.

"How did the accident happen?" I asked.

"My mom and I were on our way home from my baseball game when this speeder crashed into us. That was when it crashed into a pole," explained Logan.

"Yikes!" I exclaimed in a low voice.

"Tell me about it. My mom told me that speeder got caught and he's going to court next month," continued Logan.

"Good," I said as Logan agreed.

Later, at home, I was starting to feel very tired again for some reason. I did sleep for two extra hours earlier. Isn't that odd or what? I was also feeling pale and my face was red.

"Hi, honey," Sharon greeted me.

"Hi, Sharon, I just got home from seeing Logan. Dad already knew about that," I said.

"He told me that, too," said Sharon. "How was Logan today?"

I told her about the doctors gave him a surgery on his legs since they weren't working right.

"Oh, dear. How is he doing now?" asked Sharon.

"He's doing well and will be on crutches for a month," I answered.

"I'm glad he's doing well. Are you feeling okay, honey? You look pale," said Sharon.

"I'm just tired, that's all. It's odd because I slept for two extra hours before I went to see Logan," I said.

"Maybe you should go lie down for a bit," suggested Sharon.

"I think I should, too," I said as I went up to my room.

But I could not go to sleep because I kept thinking about Logan. I sort of managed to sleep for quite awhile. I was asleep when Dad, surprisingly, came home from early.

"You're home early. You're never home early except for the day before your day off," said Sharon.

"I found out I get to have two weeks off from work starting tomorrow, so I'll be on vacation. In fact, I have to go on a business tomorrow morning, so that's why Randy was letting me home early to get ready," explained Dad.

"Good for you!" exclaimed Sharon happily.

"I figured I'll take you girls out for dinner tonight," continued Dad.

"Sounds good to me," said Sharon.

"Is Mary Anne home yet?" asked Dad as he was getting some coffee.

"She is and she looked very tired even though she told me she slept for two more hours before seeing Logan," replied Sharon as she told him about Logan. "So I just suggested she can lie down for awhile."

"Okay, that's fine," said Dad. "We can go out at about six pm anyway."

"Good thinking," agreed Sharon.

"What I'll do is I'll take a quick shower at five pm & when I'm ready, we can leave," Dad told Sharon the plan.

"Where are we going to eat?" asked Sharon.

"I'm thinking of going to _Stamford Fan Zone_," answered Dad.

"Sounds good to me," agreed Sharon.

I don't know what time Sharon came into my room because I was still asleep.

"Mary Anne, get ready, your father's taking us out for dinner," said Sharon.

But I was still very tired. I'm not in the mood to go out. I don't feel like to fall asleep in the restaurant.

"Do you think Dad would mind if I stay behind? I'm still very tired. I know I can take a shower, but I don't think that'd keep me awake," I said.

"I don't think he'll mind," said Sharon.

I asked Dad if I could stay home since I was too tired to go anywhere. He didn't mind at all, he didn't blame me for staying home when I was feeling tired. He told me he was going on a business trip for two weeks starting tomorrow, but not until the afternoon, so we can spend the afternoon for awhile after school. That can be a good time to show him the AD.

He usually goes on the business trip in Chicago, Illinois. This time he was going to be in Augusta, Maine. Later, I couldn't sleep at all. I was still worried about Logan even though he's fine. I just pray that he'll be fine. I can't wait for him to be out of the hospital and for him to come back to school. I miss him.


	5. Mary Anne Meets Linda Hall

The next day, I was tired, but I took a shower and went to school. At least I'd be with Dad before he leaves for the business trip. I'm going to miss him a lot. I'm going to try to show him that AD. I was sure he'd let me volunteer.

I had the AD in my backpack so I can show it to him after school. He was due to leave for around four-thirty this afternoon. I'm glad we'd have plenty of time to spend time together.

"Can we also spend time together alone when you get back?" I asked when he picked me up.

"Of course we can," smiled Dad.

"I'm going to miss you when you leave," I said.

"I'm going to miss you as well," said Dad. "Maybe we can do the father-daughter business trip on a school vacation. They're supposed to announce that before summer begins."

"Sweet!" I exclaimed. "I have something to show you after when you get a chance."

"Okay," said Dad. "I have to get gas anyway."

"Alright," I said.

We stopped at the gas station near Stamford since we were spending the day at the mall like we always do every now and then. Sometimes we do different things.

"I need to get a couple of things here before I leave for the business trip," said Dad. "Once I pay after getting gas, we can park and go in."

"Okay," I replied.

That's what we did after he parked the car and went in.

"What do you need?" I asked.

"Just some snacks. The meetings are providing snacks. I'm not getting drinks until I get to Maine in case they get flat," said Dad.

"Good idea," I agreed. "Do you need any kind of snacks?"

"Yes, a couple of people I know are diabetics," said Dad.

"Okay," I said. "So, do you want me to get pretzels, Lay's Chips, and crackers? Stacey eats those at Claudia's during a meeting. She also eats rice cakes."

"That's a good idea to get," said Dad.

That's what I got for him. He got some candy and a few other chips like Doritos both Nacho Cheese and Blue Ranch & Cheetos.

"We can bring these snacks home first, and then we can spend the rest of our time together before I leave," said Dad after he paid.

"Sounds like a good plan to me," I replied.

I love to spend time with Dad, I feel close to him. He says no matter what happens, we'll always be close and it's true. We did as we planned. After we dropped off the snacks, we went out. We went back to Stamford for the mall.

At the mall, in the food court for a treat, I did show Dad the AD.

"That sounds like a good idea for you," said Dad.

"Yeah, I know. It's for ages 13 and up," I said.

"You can call the leader tomorrow when you get home from school," said Dad.

"Okay. Thanks," I smiled.

I can cook pretty well, so I can do that. I'm sure I'd do okay serving people from the kitchen, so I don't think that'd be a problem even though I'm pretty shy around new people. We stayed at the mall until three-thirty. Maine is the driving distance, so he'll be driving there.

"Are you going to call us?" I asked.

"Of course I would," smiled Dad.

"Okay. You better," I teased him as we laughed.

At four-thirty, after Dad gathered everything and packed his car, he said good-bye to us and left for Maine. I usually get upset when he leaves, but I do get very happy when he returns.

"We can go out for dinner four times, twice this week and twice next week," said Sharon.

"Okay," agreed Dawn.

"I showed Dad the AD and he gave me permission to volunteer. He said it's a good idea for me, so he told me I can call the leader when I get home from school tomorrow," I said.

"That's good," said Sharon.

"See, Dawn, I told you he'd let me," I teased her.

We just laughed. The next day, when I got home from school and before I started my homework, I called up Linda Hall and made arrangements to meet with her about the volunteering. I was going to meet her tomorrow after school. It was all set after that. Then I started on my homework. I already finished my essay yesterday and handed that in to the teacher. It was two days early. Most of them are almost done with it. I was the only one who finished it early. He was pleased about it. He wasn't going to announce the winners until Friday anyway.

After school, I walked over to Stoneybrook Church and went to the church basement where she told me to go meet her. I found a priest.

"How can I help you?" asked a priest.

"Can you tell Mrs. Linda Hall that I'm here? I'm Mary Anne Spier. I was going to meet her today," I said.

"Of course," said the priest.

He went to go find her and came back.

"She'll be right with you, dear," said the priest.

"Thank you," I smiled.

"Make yourself comfortable to wait for her," said the priest.

I only waited for one minute when she came out.

"Hi, Mary Anne," smiled Linda.

"Hi," I said.

"You can call me Linda. You can come with me in the office," said Linda.

"Okay," I said.

I did and sat at her desk.

"We do some events at Stoneybrook Party Hall or at Stamford Club for Parties and mostly here. We also do Bingo on Tuesday and Thursday nights from seven to eight here. You can come here by five to set up and bake for those bingo nights," said Linda.

"Alright. What time do the other events begin?" I asked.

"We do it from eight to eleven at night. We don't do it on Bingo nights," said Linda.

"Perfect because I have Baby-Sitters Club meeting from five-thirty to six every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday," I told her.

"We do it in the afternoon on Saturdays and Sundays from one to four," said Linda. "You can come by eleven so we can go over to the assigned places to get ready for those events."

"What time do you want me to come? May I come here at six-fifteen after the meeting?" I asked.

"Yes, that's early enough," replied Linda. "I have a van to transport the volunteers to those places and we come back here when we're done."

"Okay," I said.

"Let me give you the schedule," said Linda as she got it and gave it to me.

I looked at that.

"Okay," I said.

"You can start anytime," said Linda.

"Is it alright if I can start in a couple weeks? I won't be here because I'll be in London, England with my history class next week. We did an essay on it and the winners get to perform it at a hotel," I replied.

"Okay. That's fine by me, honey," said Linda.

"Thanks," I said.

After I visited her, I went home to do my homework. That night, the phone rang and I answered.

"Hello. Hi, Dad! How's your business trip going?" I asked.

"Not bad, the first meeting starts tomorrow," replied Dad.

"That's good. I met Linda Hall today and I get to start in two weeks because of London, England trip for next week," I said. "We're getting the permission trip tomorrow."

"Okay. That's great," said Dad.

"She was very nice," I said. "I liked her right away. I heard Logan's going to back at school tomorrow. He already did his essay, so he was all set."

"When are they announcing the winners?" asked Dad.

"Not until Friday," I said. "I'm a little anxious about it."

"You can call me that day to let me know if you win so I can wish you luck on the performance," said Dad.

"Thanks," I said.

That seemed to make me feel a bit better. I believe in him and he always knows what to do or say whenever I feel nervous about anything. I don't know how I am going to perform in front of crowds.

Maybe it'd help if I don't look up from my winning essay and I'd do just fine. I did that last time on Authors Day when we had to do an essay about the books from that author.


	6. The Winners & the News about Mr Spier

The next day, it was only two days left until the winners will be announced to perform their winning essays. How am I feeling about this? I feel very nervous especially to perform my own essay in front of the crowd. What I'm glad about is that all of my friends would be with me since the whole History class is going to London, England, so none of the eighth graders would be at school all next week. I'd be happy if a few of my friends would be performing with me if they win, too. If it does happen, I won't have to worry about being nervous, I'd feel better.

The history teacher passed the permission slips around.

"That's where I'm from!" exclaimed Meredith excitedly after noticing we'd be going to London, England.

"We're going to London, England, which was your home?" asked Kristy.

"Yes," replied Meredith.

"Wow!" exclaimed Kristy in her low voice.

"Maybe you can show us around there," I added.

"Sounds good to me," agreed Meredith.

"I don't think the teacher would mind," said Kristy.

"I'm sure he'll let me," said Meredith.

After school, at home, I did some of my homework. I only had math and science vocabulary. I did the vocabulary first since it's very easy; I always do it in ABC order according to the glossary. After I did that, I went onto math; it was only order of operations. PEMDAS is an easy way for me to do it in order; I always remember that you would have to multiplication and division left to right same with addition and subtraction.

I know I began doing that in fourth grade and I've been getting all the problems correct ever since. When I first learned doing it, I remembered right off the bat. Don't ask me how, but I think I was the first who always get them right and you know what, I get to help the others who get confused with order of operations. Thanks to me, they all had been getting those problems correct.

After I finished my homework, I put it away. After that, I read a book for a book report for English. It was due in two weeks, but I want to get it done early. I might do it in London, England or in the train to get it done. All I have to do is read and write the book report as a summary in my own words. I started reading it in the library. I borrowed this neat book of _Gone with the Wind_. I've seen that movie before and it's pretty good. I was only in chapter five when I started reading during study hall. It has ten chapters in all. But I remembered I have to get ready to leave to go sit a client shortly.

"Don't you have a sitting job in ten minutes?" asked Dawn.

"I know, I'm getting ready to leave now," I told her putting the book on my variety.

I left to go to sit for the Arnold twins, Carolyn and Marilyn. I was sitting for them for most of the evening until almost eleven tonight because their parents were going out for dinner and a play in Stamford. When I got there, Mrs. Arnold gave me a few instructions like to feed them dinner at around six and putting them to bed at nine-thirty.

We had a fun time. The twins' been coloring, they wanted to put on a puppet show for me, and we had a picnic in their den. We kept having fun until it was time for them to go to bed.

On Friday, it was the day of the winners that would be announced and I could feel butterflies in my stomach. I pray my friends would be with me on stage, but the thing is that Kristy's in my class, so it'd be me or her.

In History, the teacher announced the winners were now posted at the principal's office and added, "You can go see it now or during lunchtime."

"Come on, Mary Anne, you, Meredith, and I can go together," smiled Kristy.

That's what we did. We went to the office and checked to see who won to perform in London. When we looked, Kristy looked at me happily.

"How come you're looking at me?" I asked.

"Look on the winner list," replied Kristy.

I noticed and my mouth dropped open when I noticed I was one of the winners with a highest score in my history, A+. Then I was in luck when I noticed Stacey, Logan, and Dawn would be on stage with me.

"At least they'll be on with me," I said.

"It also says a parent can with a winner," said Kristy.

"Sharon would since Dad's on business trip until the week after we return," I told her.

"Oh," said Kristy.

"Poor Stacey would be have with her mother and you know what happens; she worries too much of diabetes," I said.

"I know," said Kristy.

At lunch, I told Stacey about it.

"I know, I saw it, too. If she does come, I'm going to tell her I'd be just fine. She knows I never go anywhere without my injection kit and she knows I watch out what I eat," said Stacey.

"True," said Kristy.

"I agree," I said.

"Isn't it great that you and I are both performing besides Stacey and Logan?" asked my sister.

"Thank goodness," I replied. "I'd feel comfortable if I perform it without looking up otherwise I'd feel too nervous."

After school, at home, I was still reading the book after I did my other homework. I was almost done reading it anyway. I continued to read it during study hall and was in chapter seven. I finished the book by the time dinner was served.

"Mom brought home pizza," said Dawn who came up to let me know.

"Okay," I said. "I'm going to start writing the summary right after dinner, so would you mind cleaning the kitchen on your own tonight?"

"I don't mind," replied Dawn.

"I figured I'd tell you ahead of time in case I forget to do so," I told her.

"That's fine," said Dawn.

"Thanks," I smiled.

"Not a problem," my sister smiled back.

At dinner, Dawn and I told Sharon that we're the two winners to perform the essays.

"Good for you both," said Sharon.

"I can't wait to tell Dad when he calls," I smiled.

"I bet, he'll be so proud of you," smiled Sharon.

"I already told Dawn I'll be starting to write the summary after dinner, so I asked her to do the kitchen on her own tonight and she said she won't mind doing so," I said.

"That's fine," said Sharon.

After I ate, I said, "May I please be excused to start my summary?"

"Yes, of course, dear," smiled Sharon.

I got up to clear my spot and headed up to my room to start the summary. The summary wasn't even hard to do, but it took me thirty minutes since I decided to do a summary for each chapter. I like book reports. Dawn was already done with the kitchen by the time I finished the book report. It only had ten chapters like I already mentioned.

I was done after that and got undressed.

"Are you done already?" asked Dawn.

"Yes, it was simple. I wrote summaries separately by doing it for each chapter by I wrote 'Chapter 1' before a summary and so on," I replied.

"Cool idea," said Dawn. "I just finished cleaning the kitchen."

"That's good," I said. "You didn't have too much because we only had pizza."

"That's true," agreed Dawn.

"I think I'll go call Dad on his cell, he should be back at the hotel from his meeting by now," I said.

"How did you remember all that?" asked Dawn.

"Before he left, he gave me his meeting schedule, so I'll know when to call him, like before or after he returns from the meeting. It's at a hotel near where he's staying," I said.

"That was a good idea," said Dawn.

"I know," I said. "He also had his laptop, so he said I also can talk to him on a webcam he owns."

"Cool!" exclaimed Dawn excitedly.

"I'll go try his cell phone first," I said. "I can't wait to tell him about doing the winning essay."

I went to get the portable phone and dialed his cell phone number. It was ringing, but no answer and the voice mail didn't come on. That's odd, when I checked the schedule, it was supposed to end five minutes ago. I hung up and will try again later.

"Did you get him?" asked Dawn.

"No answer. His meeting was supposed to end a few minutes ago and that hotel is three minutes from his hotel," I replied.

"That's odd," said Dawn.

"I know," I agreed. "I'm getting worried there. I hope nothing happened to him."

"Maybe his meeting is still on," answered Dawn.

"Maybe," I shrugged.

Two hours later, the phone rang as I answered the portable phone I kept hoping it was Dad.

"Hello," I said. "Hi, Randy. No, this is Mary Anne. Is everything okay? He didn't answer his cell phone."

"That's why I'm calling, he had a heart attack and collapsed during the meeting," said Randy.

"What! Is he alright?" I asked.

"He'll be okay. He's in the hospital. I figured I'd let you guys know so you'll know where he is," replied Randy.

"Does he have his cell phone with him?" I asked.

"Yes, you can call him, he knew you called and didn't get to call you back because he was in the emergency room," said Randy.

"Okay," I said.

At least he's okay. After we hung up, I called Dad on the cell phone right away as he answered.

"Hello," said Dad.

"Hi, Dad," I said.

"Hi, honey," said Dad.

"Randy just called here to tell me you had a heart attack during the meeting," I said trying not to cry.

"The meeting was ending when it happened," said Dad.

"I was getting worried when you didn't answer your cell phone five minutes after the meeting," I said.

"I knew you called," said Dad.

"Randy told me," I said while the tears were starting to roll down my cheeks. "Dawn thought the meeting was still on."

"I'll be alright, sweetheart, I just have to take a Bayer's Arispin for awhile until the heart attack ends," replied Dad.

"I'm glad you'll be fine," I said wiping the tears.

"Did the winners for London got posted yet?" asked Dad.

"Yes, Dawn and I are two of the winners. Stacey and Logan are the other two winners. We'll be leaving Sunday morning," I told him.

"That's good," said Dad. "I'm happy for you."

"Thanks," I said trying to smile a bit. "That's why I was calling you. Sharon's going to London with us."

After we talked five minutes later, I still had tears rolling down as I wiped them.

"Mary Anne," said Meredith as she came in to be with me. "Are you okay?"

"My dad had a heart attack during a meeting and is in the hospital. His boss, Randy, called awhile ago to tell me that," I was still trying not to cry.

"Is he going okay?" asked Meredith.

"Yes, thank god. He just needs to take Bayer's Arispin until the heart attack ends," I replied. "I just wanted to talk to him alone."

"At least going to London would keep your mind off worrying about him," said Meredith.

"I guess so," I said. "I'll just have to pretend he's with me when I perform my winning essay."

"That's a good idea," agreed Meredith.

TBC


	7. Mary Anne's Surprise Guest

In the middle of the night, I was dreaming about earlier.

"Dad! Dad! Daddy!" I called out. "Daddy!"

"Mary Anne," said Meredith as she gets up to me.

"Daddy!" I continued.

"Mary Anne," said Meredith as I woke up. "You were having a bad dream."

"I want Dad," I said.

"It'll be okay," said Meredith.

"I just hope he gets released," I said trying not to cry again.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," said Meredith.

"I hope so," I said as I started to sob and hugged her.

"It's going to be alright," said Meredith.

The next day, I wasn't in the mood to go to school because what if I'd have trouble concentrating since I'd still be worried about Dad too much? I don't want to fall behind because of that. I told Sharon and didn't blame me for that. Later, I found out Dad was going to be released on Saturday and might have to come home the day after he rested. How did I learned that? Randy called me at around two-forty-five in the afternoon to tell me that. I was happy for that. Maybe he might be able to go to London, England after all. I didn't exactly said that in case I might get too disappointed.

That night, the phone rang as I went to answered.

"Hello," I said.

"Hi, my sweetheart," said Dad.

"Hi, Dad. I heard you're getting released on Saturday," I said.

"Yes. I can't wait until then," replied Dad.

"Me, either. I missed you a lot," I said.

"I missed you more," said Dad. "I might or might not join you for London."

"Oh," I said.

I was starting to feel disappointed. After we talked, I was still upset that he might or might not join us for London. Well, at least he'd be released. That's all that would matter I guess. On Saturday night, I started to pack my suitcase since we'd be taking the train for eight. We'd be meeting the rest at Stoneybrook Middle School for seven-fifteen since that's when the bus would take us to the train station. Only Kristy would be meeting us there since she's closer. Mr. Bruno would pick us up at seven, so we would have to get up at six. We had Chinese for dinner. I went to bed for nine.

In the middle of the night, I could not sleep at all. I've been like that since the day Randy told me about the heart attack and it hasn't gone away especially since he would be coming home Saturday. I wish it would just get out of my mind and wouldn't return for good. Meredith noticed I was up.

"Are you alright?" asked Meredth.

"I couldn't sleep," I replied.

"You're still worried about your father, aren't you?" asked Meredith.

"It's not that, the news just bothers me. I'm not worried about him anymore since he was released today-thank god," I said with tears rolling down. "That was one of the worst news that I ever received. The other was when Kayla told me her leukemia returned."

"Oh, it'll be okay now," said Meredith.

Kayla is very strong. She'll be with us for London. Thank goodness. She wasn't one of the winners though. She was in second place with a B+. The highest student in her class was an A-. Poor Kayla was so close to winning. However, she's an alternate winner since the top score wouldn't able to attend due to illness. Kristy and I learned we'd be both doing it since we were tied with an A+. I guess only ties do it together. I'm glad about it though. I feel comfortable on stage when I'm with friends. Meredith is the alternate with a B-. Kaylee is the alternate winner in Stacey's History Class with a B.

The next day, at six, that dream showed up again and woke up while I was sweating.

"Are you okay, Mary Anne?" asked Meredith.

"That dream is driving me crazy," I said.

Later, we were at the train station waiting for the train when Kristy arrived.

"Good! The train's not here yet. Sorry I'm late. There was a car accident and Charlie & I were stuck in traffic for nearly three minutes even though we left early. That car was red Chevy Cavaliar, Mary Anne," said Kristy.

"What? That's our car! Was it Dad?" I asked.

"I couldn't see anyone," replied Kristy. "I don't know if he escaped or not."

"If it was him, I hope he's okay," I prayed with my fingers crossed.

The train arrived at seven-fifty. The rest of us got on board. Ten minutes later, the train started moving. Then my cell phone rang all the sudden.

"Excuse me," I told them as I answered after I got up. "Hello."

"Hi, my girlfriend," said Dad.

"Hi, Dad," I said. "Kristy saw our car from a crash. Was everything okay?"

"I'll be alright," said Dad.

Then when I entered the snack section, I saw him waving. How did he got on the train? I got surprised and went to hug him after I hung up.

"Dad," I said happily. "This is a nice surprise. How did you get here?"

"I left the scene. They said I was going to be fine and the tow truck took it to the garage to get repaired, so the police car drove me to the train station," said Dad.

"Wow! I'm shocked about this," I said. "I'm glad you're going to be alright."

"Me, too," said Dad.

"I can't wait for Sharon, Dawn, and Meredith to be surprised to see you," I smiled.

"Where's Carlos staying?" asked Dad.

"At a friend's house since he attends Stoneybrook Day School," I said. "That's already taken care of."

Sharon came along with Dawn and Meredith.

"Did you see who's here?" I asked the girls.

They noticed who I was talking about.

"Hi, Richard," said Sharon and Dawn.

"Hi!" exclaimed Meredith excitedly.

They all came to hug him.

"This is a wonderful greeting," said Dad as we laughed.


	8. London, Here We Come!

That night, we had dinner on the train. When we went it was time for bed, we were in the sleeping car. Each of them have twin beds. I get to be with Dad since I haven't seen him for nearly two weeks. In the middle of the night, I was wide awake. Even though Dad is back, the news still bothered me a lot. I thought it would be gone by now, but it didn't. I just sat up in bed. Dad must have noticed that and he got up to sit with me.

"Are you alright, honey?" asked Dad.

"I just couldn't sleep at all," I replied.

"Is something bothering you? Sharon told me you haven't been sleeping much last week," said Dad.

"When Randy told me that you had a heart attack, that's been bothering me a lot," I told him.

"Oh, you don't have to worry about me anymore. Sharon didn't know what was bugging you," said Dad.

"Mind if I sleep in the other bed with you?" I asked.

"Sure," smiled Dad.

I did and was able to sleep for the rest of the night. I felt much better after that. It's just great to have him back. The next day, we were already in London, England at around eight. I had just gotten up then. I was already dressed. We planned to have breakfast when we get to this hotel we'd be staying at and where we'd be performing our winning essays.

When we got to the hotel, there was a buffet where we'll be eating in once we get to our rooms. Logan, Stacey, Claudia, and I are sharing one room. Kristy and Dawn are joining us since there was four beds with two pillows each in every room. Dad and Sharon are having a room next door to us. After that, we headed down for the buffet for breakfast. Then, a girl saw me and came to me on the way there.

"Hi. I think I've seen you before," said the girl.

"Yeah at school in the hallways," I replied.

"You must be Bob's friend, Mary Anne Spier," said the girl.

"Yes, how did you know Bob?" I asked.

"He's my cousin from my mom's side. She and his dad were siblings. I'm Samantha Rivera. Aren't you volunteering all the events for Linda?" asked Samantha.

"Yes," I replied.

"I do it for her," said Samantha.

"How is it?" I asked.

"Fun and easy. She's thinking of paying us to do so soon," said Samantha.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yes," said Sam.

"Like how much?" I asked.

"She's not sure yet. Probably $50 per day, so we'd get $350 per week," said Samantha.

"Wow!" I exclaimed in a low voice. "So, she's hiring us instead?"

"You got that right," replied Samantha.

"Nice," I said.

In the buffet, Marci came by.

"I just want to wish you luck," said Marci.

"Thanks," I smiled as she sat with me.

She always wishes me luck on everything now. See, she was my worst enemy, but now she's starting to become a nice person. Weird, right? At first, I didn't want to tell Dad since he tells us not to hang out with _any _immature kids. When he learned she changed to be a better person, he didn't seem to mind anymore, we were already became good friends now. Marci promised not to steal Logan from me anymore. That's been working so far. So, now if Cokie changes, we'd get along fine, but no... she's still my enemy. Imagine to be friends with enemies? As long as they can be nice, we'd be all set.

After breakfast, we get to go on tour with the group. Meredith showed us around since she was the one who grew up in London. That afternoon, we all had a picnic at Hyde Park. I noticed Kayla was asleep near the statue of Peter Pan and the lost boys. The movie takes place here at the beginning and the end. They lived in Never, Neverland where they would never grew up and they're all orphans just like Carlos who loves that movie.

"Is she tired or something?" asked Kristy.

"Probably," I replied. "It's the leukemia that's tiring her out again."

"We should get her up before we leave here," said Kristy.

"We're staying here for the afternoon," I told her. "We're not leaving until dinnertime and we're going to a restaurant Meredith told us about."

Three hours later, we were ready to leave when I went to Kayla who was still asleep.

"Kayla, it's time to leave," I said.

But she was still asleep. She was like that when I was in New York City with a fundraiser group I joined. Then a girl named Kylie Lilis, who lives around here, came to me and Kristy.

"Do you girls need any help? I can help your friend to get care at my house, so we can bring her there," said Kylie.

I kneeled down and whispered, "Kristy, we don't know this girl. We're not allowed to go anywhere with strangers."

I just stared at Kylie.

"Come on," said Kylie.

"We'd like to, but we must get going with our school. Sorry," I said.

"No, this should be a good idea," said Kristy.

"Kristy, we could get in trouble," I whispered. "What if they think we got kidnapped or something?"

"We can let them know," said Kristy.

Luckily, Marci rushed over and got us with Kayla as we left. We were planning to head back to the hotel first anyway. We had her in bed, which was next door to us where she was sharing with Dad and Sharon. Then, we left for the Paramount. Later, when we came back, I went to check on Kayla who was awake.

"Are you okay now?" I asked.

"I was just tired, that's all," replied Kayla.

"Did you want anything? We just came back from Paramount Restaurant," I said.

"No thanks," said Kayla.

"Okay," I said.

"I can't believe we're actually here. If I ended up taking someone's place, I hope I won't get too tired to do so," said Kayla.

"We'll see what happens. The essay contest is not until Wednesday anyway," I said.

"Thank god for that," said Kayla.

Since we were in London, we stayed up until it was almost eleven. I didn't sleep much though since I was worried about Kayla.


	9. The Essay Contest

The next day, I was tired because I had a rough night. I couldn't sleep much until about three. Luckily, when we got up at ten, I wasn't exactly tired, but a little bit. I took a nice shower before breakfast. At breakfast, I found out we're going on another tour. Meredith gets to be our tour guide again according to our history teacher. Then, we made plans to go to a fair after that. I decided not to let that bother me right now. Why? It would bring me back memory and I didn't want to be upset in front of everyone, but I'm not going there to let that bother me.

The fair is around the corner near the Buckingham Palace. After the grand tour, we headed straight to the fair. When we got there, I sat out of the entrance. I don't think the teacher knows why I didn't go in. Dad was at the hotel because he had a headache, so that didn't help. Kaylee's lucky that she forgot all about what happen when Kayla collapsed at a fair in New York City. That's why I stopped going due to that horrible memory. That was my decision to avoid that. Dad didn't blame me for that.

"Aren't you going in, Mary Anne?" asked the teacher.

"Um, that's okay. I'll just go to Hyde Park. I know where it is from here," I said not wanting to talk about that.

If I do end up talking about it, I get upset very easily. I just refused to go in.

"Okay, just be careful. We're not going back to the hotel until later tonight, so we're having lunch and dinner here," said the teacher. "Do you know how to get back to the hotel from there afterwards?"

"Yes," I replied.

I got a map just in case.

"Your father might try to come here when his headache goes away," said the history teacher.

"Okay," I said.

Then, I headed straight to Hyde Park. When I got there, I just strolled around. Back at the fair, Dad must have gotten better because he arrived there. I don't think he knew I'm not there, but he always knows why. That was when he saw my history teacher and went to him.

"Another tour must be nice," said Dad.

"Yes. We all enjoyed going on another tour," said the history teacher.

"Where's Mary Anne?" asked Dad.

"She went to Hyde Park. She didn't want to join us," said the teacher.

"I figured she wouldn't," said Dad.

"You knew why she didn't join us?" asked the teacher.

Dad nodded and said, "Well, she stopped going because of a bad memory she had. Kayla collapsed at one of them. She's been avoiding that memory by not going to any fairs anymore."

"Oh, I see," said the teacher. "How come she didn't say something?"

"She doesn't like to talk about it at all because she'll get upset. I understand about that," said Dad. "She'll also get upset if anyone mentions about the fair."

"Oh, I get it now," said the teacher.

"I'll stay here for a bit and then, I'll go join her at Hyde Park," said Dad.

At Hyde Park, I was still walking around. Then, I sat near a tree. Dad must have left the fair because when he came to the park, he spotted me and came to join me.

"I figured you didn't join the rest," said Dad.

I looked up and said, "I didn't want to let that bother me by not going there."

"The teacher didn't know why, but I told him you never liked talking about it. I also told him why you didn't join them," said Dad.

"Oh," I said.

I don't mind Dad telling anyone who didn't know why I stopped going to the fairs.

"You and I can spend the rest of the day together since they're eating there," said Dad.

"The teacher already told me," I said.

We did spend the whole day together. We would always do that whenever everyone-including our family-attend the fair. Sometimes, if he joins them, I'd be with a friend. He always knows when I don't join them at all in case of the bad memory returns.

On Wednesday, it was the big day. I heard the winners would perform their essays in ABC order from Bruno to Spier. Good. I perfer to go last anyway because I might not be good at going first. That night, I had a light dinner because I was nervous. When it was my turn, I was still a bit anxious. Thank god I had friends there. I was going great when I was performing my essay and I did not look up from the paper. I must have felt confident because my friends told me I did just fine. That's a good thing.

When it was over, the judges were deciding about who was going to be the winner. Then, the teacher came on the stage.

"You all did a good job, but only of you is the winner. It was a tough decision. The winner is...," said the teacher unfolding the paper. "Mary Anne Spier."

I frozed as I got up to go on the stage.

"Congratulations!" exclaimed the teacher with a smile.

"Thank you," I said as he was putting a ribbon on me.

"One prize is no homework pass for two weeks. The other is a trip to Bahamas for two or four," said the teacher.

"Wow! Awesome! Thanks!" I exclaimed excitedly.

After it was over, my friends were still happy for me. Even Dad, Sharon, Dawn, and Meredith were glad for me.

"I'm proud of you, sweetie," smiled Dad.

"Thanks, Daddy," I said as I hugged him.

"I think we should celebrate," said Kristy.

"I think so, too," I agreed.

That's what we did the following day by having lunch at the cafe. Kayla didn't join us though. She was getting tired again. That's making me worried again. That didn't stop me from being excited about winning. Thank god that kept me busy for awhile. We were taking the train back home Saturday and we would be back home Sunday. And... I can't wait to start working on Monday!

"Are you all excited about Monday?" asked Samantha.

"Yes. I'm counting down days," I replied.

We laughed at that.

"Good one!" Samantha was still laughing.

"I know," I agreed.

"This is also great that we would be working together now," said Samantha as I agreed with her.

"I agree," I said.

"Marci works with me, too," said Samantha.

"Swell. She's my friend now," I said as I told her about it.


	10. Mary Anne's First Night of the Job

On Saturday, we left to go back home. We were waiting for the train station when I heard a weird sound.

"What is that sound?" I asked covering my ears.

"I don't know. That's hurting my ears, too," said Kaylee.

Then, I noticed it was a jeep that looked like an army from Iraq.

"What is that Iraq army jeep doing in London?" asked Kayla.

"Who knows?" I asked shrugging my shoulders.

I also heard a loud gunshot. That was even louder. But when they tried to shot us, we ducked!

"I hope the train comes sooner or later. That gunshot is going to bust my eardrums out," I said as both Kayla and Kaylee agreed with me.

"The train ride is canceled. It just got derailed when that army jeep ran over the train," said Dad who heard about it from my History teacher.

"Just great," I muttered.

"So, we'll have to go back to the hotel," said the History teacher.

"What about taking a flight?" asked Kristy.

"You know what? That's a better idea, but it left yesterday and will not be back until tomorrow morning at around eight because it takes overnight just like the train," said the teacher.

"We'll take that," said Kristy.

Good thinking. Later, I heard that everyone got out safe. That never happens before. No one died, but about 10 people were injured. People are very lucky for what I heard as well. At least I would be starting my new job on Monday. That night, at eleven, I was tossing and turning in bed while dreaming about the train being derailed by that Iraq army jeep while we were going home and Kayla was killed. It's not that I'm worried about that, it just happens.

Dad, who was in our room, must have noticed when he turned over and said, "Mary Anne, sweetie."

I was still tossing and turning while he got up and went over to me.

"Mary Anne," said Dad sitting on the bed next to me. "Honey."

I just kept on tossing and turning while I was sweating.

"Mary Anne, sweetheart," said Dad as I woke up. "Are you alright now? You were tossing and turning."

I sat up in bed while shaking.

"What were you dreaming about that's scaring you?" asked Dad as I was telling him while he just smiled. "That won't happen to us."

"I'm not worried about that, I just get the weirdest dreams that I know that won't happen to any of us," I said.

"It'll be alright," said Dad while comforting me.

The next day, at six, that same dream must have returned because I woke up in a middle of the nightmare when the train got derailed. Why do I always get those oddest dreams that will not happen for real? That always seem to happen to me. It never fails! I didn't dare to go back to sleep in case that dream shows up again. Sure enough, I probably did go back to sleep because one minute before we got up, I woke up from that same horrible dream and it's driving me crazy. How can I get rid of them? I just laid there until the seven hits. I like slept for five minutes when Dad came over to me.

"Honey, it's time to get up," said Dad.

When I got up, Dad noticed I was tired.

"You look tired this morning," said Dad.

"I kept waking up from that same dream twice, once at six. I almost didn't want to fall asleep and I must have fallen asleep when it came back just before we got up," I said. "And, it's driving me nuts."

"I know. Try not to think about it, that's all," said Dad.

"True," I agreed.

I knew he's right about that. At eight, we were in the airplane heading back home. I'm glad Kristy thought about that yesterday otherwise we'd be stuck here until another train comes soon. I'd be going out of my mind. Seriously! The next day, we were already back in Stoneybrook. The Hisory teacher excused us from school to get some rest. I'd be starting my new job later on anyway.

"We can still have the meeting later on today," announced our president.

"Why we can't we relax? We just got back from London," said Claudia.

"That's not until five-thirty, remember?" asked Kristy.

I didn't mind at all.

"I'll go," I volunteered. "So, I can keep my mind off from those dreams I had two days ago. I still woke up from it while we were on the plane during the night."

"That's a good idea," agreed Kristy.

Thank god it did keep me busy later on. I hope my job would help me out in the meantime. I got a feeling I'd do well, I really do. The other gals came to the meeting, too. We were busy as well. After the meeting, Mrs. Kishi volunteered to bring me to Stoneybrook Church. When we got there, I thanked her and she wished me luck as I went in. When I got in there, Linda was waiting.

"Hi," said Linda.

"Hi," I said.

"Before we get going, we can get your uniform to work in the kitchen to cook in there," said Linda.

"Okay," I said.

She showed me where they are so I can put it back there when we return from the events. I put it on. I already had my hair up before I left Claudia. She put it in a bun for me. After that and the others showed up, they put their uniforms on and we left there to Stamford Club for Parties. It was a surprise birthday party like it says on my schedule. When we got there, I put my hair net on before entering the kitchen.

I got a menu out that Linda had left me and Samantha to do. Yes, we're partners. People get paired to prepare each meal everyday. So, I'm glad that Samantha is my partner. I don't care if I was Marci's partner as well. I don't mind working with either one. Samantha and I are going to do entrees. Samantha was doing mashed potatoes along with gravy and I was making chicken and corn on the cob for vegetables.

That was done within an hour later since the chicken takes the longest since I took that at home, too. After all that was done, we get to take a break after we washed our hands because it wasn't eight yet. But the guests started coming in. Samantha and I get to collect gifts from the guests to put them on the tables. The guests can sit wherever they want. They don't have assigned seats. So, they're all set.

"Some people get alocholic drinks at all events including Bingo, so be sure you check their IDs because they have to be at least 21 of age or older to drink," said Samantha.

"I knew," I said. "So, I won't have any problems to forget to do that."

"Okay, good," smiled Samantha.

"I know," I said. "Did any of you tend to forget that?"

"My sister, Amanda, does. I have to remind her everytime. I shouldn't have to do, she should know by now. I always make sure she doesn't forget to do so," explained Samantha.

"I agree with you. How old is she?" I asked.

"Eleven, but Linda gave her permission to work here. Amanda might get fired if she keeps forgetting to check IDs before giving anyone alcohol," said Samantha.

"Good idea," I agreed.

I wouldn't want anyone working like that either if I was Linda myself. I met Amanda before the party began. The party started when the birthday guest got surprised when he arrived. While I was giving one of the guests entrees, I noticed Amanda taking someone's order of Sex on the Beach and I think she left without checking something, so I went over to her.

"Excuse me, Amanda. Did you forget to do something when you took an order of an alcoholic drink?" I asked.

"Oh, right," said Amanda.

But she just stood there.

"Forget it. I'll go do it," I said.

It was a good thing that I did, too, because this person was 19, not 21. I went back after she asked for apple juice.

"It was a good thing I checked because that person is underage. She's 19, not 21. This place could get fine one day," I warned Amanda.

I went back to the table to give her the apple juice.

"Thank you, miss," said the 19-year-old.

Then, I went to my group.

"How's everything here?" I asked.

"Good. Thank you," replied the birthday guest.

"You're very welcome," I smiled.

I went to Linda and told her what happened with Amanda.

"Thank you for taking care of that," said Linda. "You must have known what to do."

"Yes. Sam told me," I told her.

"Good," said Linda. "After this event, I'm going to fire Amanda so she won't keep forgetting."

"Good idea," I whispered.

Samantha and I were done since giving out meals were our jobs. I told her about it. She was impressed that I remembered. I also added Amanda was going to be laid-off after tonight. Samantha agreed on that.

"I don't blame Linda," said Samantha.

Then, it was time for desserts. Marci takes care of that. Since she was doing it on her own, I decided to pitch in.

"Thanks, Mary Anne," smiled Marci.

"Not a problem," I smiled back.

I'm glad I did. Linda noticed how helpful I was. When people asked for any alocholic drinks, I _never_ once forgot to check their IDs, no matter how old they are. Linda was impressed about that since some new people forget often. After the desserts were over, it was time to open gifts and I get to help out by giving the birthday man presents one by one. Both Samantha and Marci offered to give me a hand. Good. I like working in a group as long as I get the ones I know first. I'm not used to work with a group of strangers-yet. After the birthday party was over and the guests left, it was time to clean up. Amanda was the only one who was (sorry to say this) lazy.

Samantha had to tell Amanda to help out, but she refused to do, so Linda had to make her do it. Good. By the way, she did tell Amanda that she's fired. She didn't care at all. She did pout though. Have you ever hear an 11-year-old swear? That's what she did. Marci, Sam, and I did ignore that while we were cleaning up. Linda had to tell Amanda to keep it down. Good.

After the clean up was finished, we headed back to Stoneybrook Church. When we got there, Dad was already there waiting for me.

"I'll bring the uniform inside for you," Marci offered.

"Thanks," I said as I took it off to give it to her. "Bye. See you tomorrow at school."

"Bye. You did terrific on your first night," commented Linda.

"Thank you," I said as I went to the car.

"Hi, honey, how did it go on your first night?" asked Dad as we drove off.

"Good," I replied as I told him all about it.

"That's good that Amanda's getting laid-off," said Dad as I agreed.

I was so tired that when I got home, I got comfy and went to bed right away.


	11. Bingo Night

The next day, we were back at school. I was glad that those dreams about the derailed train are gone for good since we got back yesterday or otherwise that would drive me insane! Seriously! At school, my mind about it was clear as a bell and was able to focus in all of my classes all day. Thank goodness, right? Tonight was bingo night to volunteer. I am looking forward to do so. That starts at seven and I'd have to be at the church by five to set up and bake for bingo like Linda told me when I first met her.

At lunch, I went to Samantha and said, "Maybe we can walk to church together for bingo."

"Yeah. We can do that on all bingo nights," said Samantha.

"Sounds good to me," I agreed.

"We can go to your house first since the church isn't far from Burnt Hill Road," said Samantha.

"Okay," I said. "Good idea."

After school, Samantha and I walked to my house.

"How is Kayla doing? She looks tired," said Sam on the way.

"She's getting strong. I'm glad she doesn't let cancer slow her down," I said.

"That's a good thing," said Samantha as I agreed with her.

"But I do worry about her," I said.

"How's Kaylee holding up?" asked Sam.

"Well, she's worried about losing her twin and best friend," I told her.

"I bet," agreed Samantha.

"I don't even want to lose her. She's my best friend and I'd be heartbroken if I ever lose her. We're like sisters," I said.

"I bet you would since you're attached to her," said Samantha.

"Thank god I saved her life when she first had it by doing fundraisers with a help from my friends. If it wasn't for us, she wouldn't be here today," I said.

"I agree with you," said Samantha as we went inside my house.

We were in my room doing our homework.

"We could leave at four-thirty to give us enough time to get to the church on time. Before you came along, I'd leave at four-fifteen and it's nearly four blocks from my house. You're two blocks away," said Samantha.

"Yeah, we could leave at that time. When I met Linda, it's only about ten minutes from here," I said.

"Perfect," said Samantha. "We'd be there at four-forty."

"Exactly," I smiled.

"And, if you wouldn't able to attend Bingo, you can let me know," said Sam.

"Okay," I agreed.

At four-thirty, we left for church for Bingo. We got there ten minutes later and went in the church basement where Bingo nights take place according to Samantha.

"Hi, girls, you're the first two today," said Linda.

"Swell," I said.

"Awesome," said Samantha.

"What desserts do you make on Bingo nights?" I asked.

"We do different baked goods on those evening," Linda responded to me.

"Okay," I said. "Does it involve with alcohol, too?"

"Yes, same thing like last night. Bingo players need to be 18 to play, but no ID is required since they know the rules except they appear to be under 21 for any alcohol, that's the only they need to show their IDs," explained Linda.

"Okay. No problem," I said.

"I'm still impressed how you remembered when Amanda nearly forgot to do. You did the right move," said Linda.

"My dad was impressed when I told him about it," I said.

"I bet he was. I'm still very proud of you," said Linda.

"Thanks," I smiled.

In the kitchen, the tonight's desserts are brownies with nuts for one half and without them on the second half, my assignment, Samantha's job is jello both regular and sugar-free, and Marci, who came five minutes before five, was going to bake cupcakes- half chocolate with chocolate frosting and half vanilla with vanilla frosting.

"Most bingo players are diabetics, some are allergic to nuts, and others are allergic to chocolate," said Marci.

"Okay. Do you put contains nuts for any signs to warn them?" I asked.

"Yes. Even when we put them on separate plates anyway. The brownies with nuts go on one plate and without nuts on the other plate," explained Samantha.

"Alright. I just want to make sure," I said.

"And, it's always good to ask when you're new," said Sam.

"That's right," agreed Marci.

"I agree as well," I added.

"I'll get the signs ready when the cupcakes and brownies in the oven," said Marci.

"Good idea while Sam and I keep an eye on them until you come back in," I said.

"Sounds like a great idea to me," said Marci.

After Marci and I put both cupcakes and brownies in the tray, she went out to do the signs and came back in while the baked goods were still in the oven. They were done about 20 to 30 minutes later. They were done perfectly. Marci and I cut the brownies together to put them on the plates and I helped her putting cupcakes on the plates. I took out chocolate cupcakes and I frosted them with chocolate frosting while Marci did the vanilla cupcakes. Sam volunteered to bring all the treats out. We were done in no time. Thank goodness.

Samantha and I got assigned to do the bar while Marci was going to hand out the prizes for the Bingo winners. I checked the soda machine to see if there was enough sodas for everyone. They were filled. All it needed was ice.

"Where do you get the ice?" I asked Sam.

"I'll show you," replied Samantha.

She did and helped me to fill the ice. That was done after about two to three packs of ice.

"Thank you for doing that, girls," said Linda.

"No problem," I said. "The soda machine needed some."

"I bet it did," agreed Linda.

After I helped Marci organizing all of the prizes, we get to take a break since it was almost six-thirty. Good timing, huh? I had a water break. Samantha, Marci, and I decided to go for pizza at _Pizza Hut_ after Bingo is done and after we're done cleaning up. That was the plan tonight. After I had some water, I went to the bar to get ready when people started coming up and were getting ready to play Bingo. Linda is the Bingo caller. Sam and I would take turns to ID people who ordered alcohol and Sam showed me the chart to show me how to make some of them. That was a good idea. I was a pro after that. We also took turns to make alcohol drinks as well while giving anyone under 21 soda, water, and juice.

A 19-year-old girl came up and said, "I would like to have Sex on the Beach please."

"May I see some ID first?" I asked as she did. "Sorry, we cannot serve that to anyone under 21."

"I'll have orange juice then," replied the 19-year-old lady.

That's what Samantha did and the 19-year-old woman left.

"You've been doing a great job to remember that," said Samantha. "You didn't make one mistake so far."

"You bet. I didn't plan to make any mistakes at all to get fired," I said.

"Good, no one should forget like Amanda almost did," said Samantha as I agreed with her.

"Did she serve at the bar before she was fired?" I asked.

"Linda never trusted Amanda to do that in case she makes a mistake," replied Samantha.

"I don't blame her. I wouldn't either," I said.

"Not me either. Same with Marci," said Samantha.

After Bingo ended at eight and everything was cleaned up, the girls and I hung up our uniforms and left to have pizza at _Pizza Hut_ like we planned.


	12. Meredith's Bad News

After we had _Pizza Hut_, we went home. Sam's mom gave me and Marci a ride. It was a plan. Dad already knew about it because I called him to tell him before I left _Pizza Hut_. When I got home, I thank Mrs. Rivera and I went in.

"Hi. How your first night of Bingo?" asked Dad.

"Good," I answered.

"That's good," smiled Dad.

I told him about my night.

"I made hot chocolate for myself. Would you like me to make you one, too?" asked Dad.

"That would be a great. Thanks," I smiled.

Dad got up to go make one when Meredith saw me home.

"Hi," I said.

"Hi," said Meredith.

Something must be wrong because she looked upset. That's what good about being an excellent listener is all about.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"I got a letter from London, England today to tell me that a tourbus blew up yesterday," said Meredith.

"That doesn't sound good," I said.

Dad came back and said, "Here's the hot chocolate, honey."

"Thanks," I said. "Did anyone live?"

"Almost everyone lived except for...," Meredith paused. "For my mom and Kara."

"Wow, I'm sorry to hear that," I said holding her hand.

"Thank you," said Meredith.

"Why don't we go out there while I have my hot chocolate and we can chat for awhile?" I suggested.

"Okay," said Meredith trying to smile.

That's what we did. I felt bad for her. Dad must have let Meredith to tell me because he didn't mention it to me, which is fine, when I got home. Poor Meredith.

"That tour bus crash reminds me of on how my father died," said Meredith trying to hold back to tears.

"I bet it does," I agreed comforting me. "Whenever you need me, I'll be right by your side when I come down from work."

"Thanks, Mary Anne," said Meredith as she hugged me and she did start crying.

I know on how that feels since I was upset when I first heard about Logan being in a car crash even though he's been fine and on how Kayla told me leukemia came back. That's what I told her. The next day, Meredith was too upset to come to school. She might go to her mother and Kara's funeral and she asked me to go with her to support her.

"Okay. Once the funeral is set up, let me know and I'll tell Linda ahead of time," I said. "Are they sending you a letter from London, England when everything is all set?"

"Yes," replied Meredith. "I should get it today or tomorrow according to yesterday's letter."

"Alright. See you later," I said.

At school, the other girls were looking for Meredith.

"Where's Meredith?" asked Kristy.

"She's out today. When I got home from Bingo last night, I noticed she seemed upset and she told me that letter from London, England arrived yesterday to tell her that a tour bus blew up the day before. Only two people got killed, which were her mother and sister," I explained.

"That's terrible to hear," said Stacey.

"I know. I felt so bad for her," I said. "She asked me to go there for a funeral when it's all arranged."

"You are?" asked Claudia.

"I told her I would to support her. She's expecting a letter sometime today or tomorrow to let her know and she can tell me so I can tell Linda ahead of time. I don't think she'll mind if anyone gives her head up before anything. That's what Marci told me today when I saw her earlier before Samantha," I said.

"That's a very thoughtful of you," said Kristy.

"I know. After all, she and I are good friends," I said.

"I wonder if your family would love to keep her," said Stacey.

"We haven't really talked about it yet," I said. "But I'm sure Meredith would love that idea."

"Plus you and Meredith would share your room for the rest of your lives," added Claudia.

"That is true," I agreed.

"I bet your family would adopt her after the funeral," said Kristy.

"And your family would be getting bigger with five kids. Boy, Mary Anne, you're getting pretty lucky," said Stacey who was an only child like I was before I had Dawn.

"I know," I smiled as we giggled.

After school, at home, Meredith had just gotten another letter saying the funeral in London, England would be held on Monday.

"You and I can leave Friday since it takes overnight, so we'll be there Saturday. The wake is on Sunday night and the funeral is on Monday morning," said Meredith.

"Okay. Are we coming back home that day or Tuesday?" I asked.

"We'll take a train Tuesday since the plane would be on its way here during the funeral," said Meredith. "That train got fixed according to the letter."

"Okay. I'll tell Linda today and if you go to school tomorrow, we can tell our teachers," I said.

"That's true I should," agreed Meredith.

"And if you're not, I can do that," I said.

"Thanks," smiled Meredith.

"No problem," I smiled back.

Later, after the BSC meeting, at Stoneybrook Church, I told Linda what was going on.

"Okay. No problem," said Linda.

"Thanks," I said.

"You can remind me tomorrow since you'd be gone Friday," said Linda.

"I will," I promised.

After I worked, back at home, I was _too_ exhausted to stay up with Dad, so I got into my nightgown and went to bed right away. That's how tired I was. In the middle of the night, I thought I could hear someone dreaming, but when I sat up in bed, I noticed it was Meredith who was calling out for her mother and Kara.

"Meredith," I said getting up to her sitting on the bed with her. "Meredith."

That was when she woke up.

"You were having a bad dream," I said.

"Did I wake you up?" asked Meredith.

"Don't you worry a thing," I said holding her hand. "You took it bad about your mom and sister. It's okay."

"I love it when you understand besides your father and Sharon," said Meredith. "So does Carlos since he went through the same thing with his family."

"True. What about Dawn? I thought she does," I said.

"She didn't care. She hopes that I don't remind here for good," said Meredith.

"Why?" I asked.

"She thinks you would spend all this time with me," said Meredith.

"Don't listen to what she tells you," I said. "I got a feeling she's going to get jealous."

"I did ignore her," said Meredith. "Your dad and Sharon told her to knock it off."

"Good," I said. "Do you want to sleep with me in my bed?"

"Okay. Thanks, Mary Anne," said Meredith.

She did and felt better after that. That's a good sign. The next day, I mentioned to my teachers and that was all set. Later, at Bingo, I did remind Linda like I promised. That was all set, too. After Bingo ended, at home, I packed my suitcase to be all done.


	13. Meredith and Mary Anne in London

The next day, after Meredith and I got ready, we left for the airport at six-thirty by a taxi since the flight is at eight. We checked in and headed for the gate 19 where the London plane would be. It was only seven-fifteen pm and the plane should be here in about 15 minutes. It arrived almost five minutes early. Once after everyone got off, Meredith and I went in the plane to get our seat.

It took off at eight on the dot going to London. It would feel funny to be back there because that's where the essay contest was held. That evening, we ate chicken with corn for dinner on the plane. It was a good meal. We were in London the following day. We went to the hotel where we were staying at. Dad lend me his credit card to pay for the hotel. He had an extra one with him.

We checked in and went to our assigned room. In our room, we put our stuff aside. Later, I called home to tell Dad everything is okay. Hour differences can be pretty tough at times, but I have no problems.

The next day, the wake was scheduled from six to eight pm. We got our dresses out to get them ready. We started getting ready later after an early dinner and left the hotel by five pm. We got to _London Funeral Home_ within 30 minutes later. We went in to go sit. Meredith had no other relatives. Her grandparents died not long before her father did. Both of her parents have no siblings.

I bet Meredith would stay with my family for the rest of her life. That would be wonderful. I'd have two brothers and two sisters. That would be very cool. But we'll see and wait what happens first since no one talked about adopting Meredith just yet. I hope that does happen. I really like Meredith being with us. I'm sure my family feels the same way. The wake started at exactly six like it was planned.

Poor Meredith tried so hard not to cry. She's also trying to be strong. I'm sure she will be stronger growing up without her family. I'd be on her side if she needs me anyway. She was holding onto my hand for the whole wake. Her mother and sister's friends were there, too. They felt sorry for Meredith.

They came to her after the wake was over.

"How are you holding up?" asked her mother's friend, Linda Moons.

"Not well at all," replied Meredith.

"Who's your new friend?" asked Mrs. Moons

"Mary Anne. I'm with her family in Stoneybrook, Connecticut," said Meredith.

"That's good," said Mrs. Moons.

"How do you like it there?" asked her daughter, Marie, who was Meredith and Kara's friend.

"I like it," replied Meredith.

"That's good to hear. Do you plan to stay there?" asked Mrs. Moons.

"To be honest with you, yes because I feel safe there," said Meredith. "I want to be adopted by Mary Anne's family."

"That's a good choice," said Marie.

"I know," agreed Meredith.

At the hotel, we got invited to stay overnight with Mrs. Moons, so we got our things, checked out, and left with her and Marie. Her only brother died just after he was born when Marie was three and barely remembers that moment according to Meredith.

The house was like an old apartment that looked like it was burned down. Somehow, I managed to stay there over night. Mrs. Moons told us it had a fire in their kitchen two weeks ago. Isn't that horrible or what?

"I want it to be fixed, but I can't afford it. I just got laid off a week ago because a business was shutting down," said Mrs. Moons. "So, I'm looking for another job to get my kitchen fixed."

"That's terrible," said Meredith.

"I know. My husband left just before your mother and Kara's death," continued Mrs. Moons.

"Really? I liked him," said Meredith. "Where is he?"

"He's around here. Marie visits him," said Mrs. Moons.

"Oh, good," said Meredith.

The next day, we got up for the funeral that is set up for nine. At the funeral, Meredith had my hand again and almost squeezed, but I didn't care at all. After the funeral, we got our stuff and got on a train that was leaving at eleven am. We would be having lunch in about an hour in the cafe section. An hour later, we had a good lunch. We had a salad and a tuna sandwich.

That night, we had a chicken breast with mashed potatos and gravy and corn. That was good, too.


	14. Meredith Gets Adopted

The next day, we were already back in Stoneybrook. Dad was at the train station to bring us home. Meredith was pretty quiet. At home, I was with my father.

"How she made it out during the wake and the funeral?" asked Dad.

"She's been trying to be strong, but it's really tough for her," I replied.

"I bet," said Dad.

"She told her mother's friend she wanted to be adopted by us," I said in a low voice.

"That's what we're thinking of doing," said Dad.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yes. We enjoy having her here," said Dad.

"Swell," I said. "Does she know?"

"Not yet," replied Dad. "We'll tell her when adoption papers are signed tomorrow."

"Wow, she'll be surprised," I said.

"I know," said Dad. "I wanted it to be a surprise for her. If you tell a soul, I'll duct tape your mouth."

"My lips are sealed," I promised while I was laughing. "Does anyone else know?"

"Just Dawn, Carlos, and Sharon," said Dad.

"I hope Dawn doesn't get jealous," I said.

"I already told her she needs to learn to adjust changes," said Dad.

"Good, I was concerned about that," I said.

That afternoon, at the BSC, I decided not to mention the news about Meredith until the adoption papers are completed. Dawn didn't want to mention it.

"Are you going back to work tonight after the meeting?" asked Kristy.

"Yes," I replied. "Linda knows I was going to be back today."

"How did it go over the weekend with Meredith?" asked Kristy.

"It was very tough for Meredith. She tried to be strong. She held on my hand for the whole time," I said.

"At least you were there for her," said Stacey.

"I know," I agreed.

After the meeting, Mrs. Kishi gave me a ride to the church. I thanked her and went inside the hall. It was for a school dance for all Stamford Middle and High Schools and we're cathering at a banquet hall. That would be fun to cater students. After all that was over, it was past nine-thirty and it didn't take us long to clean up.

Later on, at home, no one was home yet. I got into my nightgown and went to bed. I left the lights on so everyone else can come in and didn't have to worry to bump into everything in the dark. Smart idea, right? I didn't hear anyone come home after ten or so because I was still asleep.

The next day, Meredith said, "Guess what?"

"What is it, Meredith? You look excited," I said after I woke up with a start.

"I am. Your family adopted me. They surprised after the adoption papers got filled. I was _so_ thrilled about that. Can't you believe you and I are sisters now?" asked Meredith.

"I can. This is going to be terrific," I smiled.

At least I didn't spoil the secret.

"The best of all, we'd shared your room for life," said Meredith.

"I know we would," I agreed.

"I'm glad I have a family again. It feels like they're still alive," said Meredith.

"That's true. That's a good way to think about your family," I said.

"I think so, too," said Meredith with a grin. "Carlos is glad to be my brother now. He would be my first brother."

"Actually, Jeff would be your brother, too," I said since she met him before.

"Oh, yeah," said Mereditha as we giggled at that.

I also like it when a friend is a sibling. You wouldn't have to worried about an enemy as your stepsibling. That would be the worst thing in my life if that did happen to me- if I didn't have Dawn. I do feel very lucky to have four siblings like my friends mentioned before!


	15. The Sad News about Linda

Meredith and I were still glad that we're sisters now. We get to celebrate about her adoption by going out for dinner the following night. Her choice was _Friendly's_. I could tell her she has already forgotten about her mother and sister. That was a good sign.

Three weeks to a month later, at school, Samantha came to me and said, "Did you hear the news this morning?"

"No. What about, Sam?" I asked.

"Linda was in a car crash last night after she lost control when a drunk driver crashed into her car," said Samantha.

"She did?" I asked as she nodded. "Uh-oh."

"She's in critical condition in the hospital, so most of the events are postponed until further notice," said Samantha.

"Okay, I'm glad you're telling me this otherwise we'd go there for nothing," I said. "Does Marci know?"

"I didn't see her yet, so if you see her before me, pass it on to her," said Samantha.

"Okay. Will do," I promised.

At least Linda would live so far. I did mentioned it to Marci and was glad I told her.

"Samantha told me to tell her if I see you before she did," I said.

After school, at home, I started to feel nauseous, so I drank some water before I did my homework. In my room, I did my homework when I almost threw up on it when I covered my mouth and rushed over to the bathroom as I started vomiting. That was a close call. My stomach was starting to hurt me after that.

"Were you okay?" asked Meredith.

"I'll be fine. I thought I was going to be sick on my own homework. Glad I took off before that happened," I said.

"Otherwise that would be embarrassing," said Meredith as I agreed.

That night, I told Dad about Linda's car accident and that most of the events will be canceled until further notice.

"Okay," said Dad.

"Samantha was the one who mentioned it to me this morning at school," I said. "I was able to pass it on to Marci."

I didn't eat much because I was getting that nausea feeling again. Oh, brother.

"Excuse me," I said as I fled from the table to the bathroom.

"Is she alright?" asked Sharon.

"I should go check on her," said Dad.

I was in the bathroom throwing up while Dad came in to keep me company.

"It's going to be okay, honey, I'm here," said Dad comforting me.

After that, I asked him if I can be excused from the table and he didn't mind about that. I was asleep when the phone rang and I wasn't sure if it was Samantha because Dad told her I wasn't feeling tonight and Samantha was giving him an important.

"Oh, I'll tell her," said Dad.

"Thank you," said Samantha.

They hung up.

"What is it?" asked Sharon.

"Linda passed on awhile ago," said Dad. "So, all of the events are postponed for the time being until they could find a new director."

"Oh," said Sharon.

"Mary Anne's sleeping, so I'll tell her later," said Dad. "That's why Samantha was calling."

"Mary Anne is going to be disappointed," said Carlos.

"I know," said Meredith.

In my room, I was still asleep when Dad came by, so he decided to let me sleep. He probably didn't want to wake me to tell me something.

"She's still sleeping, so I'll wait until she wakes up. If not, I'll tell her tomorrow," said Dad.

"Okay, that would be a better idea to do," said Sharon.

"I agree," said Dawn.

"If not, Samantha will tell Mary Anne tomorrow if she's well enough," said Dad.

I didn't even get up at all except to put on my nightgown and went back to bed because I still wasn't feeling good. In the middle of the night, I was getting a headache and got up to take Aleve with water. I was surprised that stayed down since I was feeling nauseous. The next day, I was feeling hot and cold all over. I still had that headache and nausea feeling. That's what I told Dad.

"You're coming down with a flu," said Dad as he felt my head when he noticed how pal I was. "You're warm. I should keep you home from school today."

"That would be a good idea," I agreed.

"I need to tell you something later on so you can get some rest," said Dad.

"Okay," I said.

At least he was doing the right thing because I slept and I kept puking most of the day. I had toast, but it didn't stay down. That was very tiring. I was finally able to sleep after three that afternoon. I was still asleep when the others came home from school. Dawn had to go baby-sit for the Newtons.

"I wonder when Dad would tell Mary Anne the news," said Carlos.

"She might be sleeping right now," said Meredith. "He told he already her he would tell her later on so she can rest."

In my room, I was feeling nauseous again.

"Here we go again," I groaned.

That was when I got up in a jiffy and rushed over to the bathroom and started throwing up.

"Perhaps whenever Mary Anne's sick with the stomach flu, you can always sleep in my room until she gets better," said Carlos.

"That would be a good idea since stomach bugs are catchy," agreed Meredith. "Thank you, Carlos."

"No problem," said Carlos.

That night, I was in bed when Dad got home from work.

"How's Mary Anne doing?" asked Dad.

"She has been throwing up since Meredith and I came home from work," said Carlos.

"Carlos told me I can sleep in his room whenever Mary Anne gets a stomach flu," said Meredith.

"That would be a good idea to," agreed Dad.

That was when I fled over to the bathroom with my mouth covered and started puking.

"Excuse me. I'll go check to see if she's okay," said Dad as he came in to be with me. "It's alright, honey, I'm here."

After that, I was feeling dizzy and I was in my room.

"I was like this all day since you left for work and stopped at three pm. I just hope I won't start up again," I said.

"Do you want any soup?" asked Dad.

"Not right now," I replied. "I had toast, but it came back up."

"Okay," said Dad as he felt my hot head. "You're still burning up."

An hour later, I was nauseous. I almost threw up when I covered my mouth in time and rushed over to the bathroom as I started vomiting.

"Dad," I called to him.

"Coming, sweetheart," said Dad.

That was when he came right in to keep me company.

"It's going to be okay," said Dad stroking my hair.

I kept throwing up until it was ten. So, Dad never get to tell me something important. Meredith was already in Carlos' room before. Dad told me what would be going on whenever I get sick at any time.

In the middle of the night, I was getting that nausea feeling again.

"Not again," I groaned.

I got up to get water trying to get rid of that feeling. I was nauseous all night, but somehow, I didn't threw up to my surprise. Thank goodness for that. But I was still like that when I got up and came down slowly. And, as just I was about to get water, I threw up on the bathroom floor near the sink to my embarrassment as I covered my mouth as I rushed over to the toliet and continued throwing up.

Dad came in to keep me company and said, "It'll be alright, sweetie."

"I think she should stay home from school again," said Sharon.

"I think so, too," said Dad.

"Did she threw up on the floor?" asked Sharon.

"Oh, she did. Can you take care of that?" asked Dad.

"Sure," replied Sharon.

She did while I kept vomiting. After that, I still so bad about that.

"I didn't expect it to happen. It happened when I was about to get some water," I said.

"Don't worry. Those things happen," said Dad.

Dad would be off today, so he'll be around in case I needed him. I was starting to get better by five when the stomach bug started up again. I hate it when that happens. I didn't get better completely until it was almost nine and I was in bed early. I didn't want anything at all just yet.

The next day, I was glad to be better to be honest with you.

"Samantha got news to tell you when you get to school," said Dad.

At school, Samantha saw me and said, "I'll let you focus in school first and wait until to tell you later on."

I got puzzled about that. I wonder if this might be about Linda, but I decided not to worry about it right now. Glad Sam didn't tell me anything because I paid attention in my classes. After school, Samantha came to me.

"What news did you want to tell me? I was out sick and Dad didn't tell me anything because I have been sleeping," I said.

"Linda died from her injuries," said Samantha.

"Oh, she did?" I asked.

"Yes, her husband called me to let me know on that. He was with her when she passed away," said Samantha.

"Does Marci know?" I asked.

"I already called her after he did," replied Samantha. "That means there will be no more events until a new leader is found."

"How long that might take?" I asked.

"They didn't say," said Samantha.

"That's a surprise," I said.

"I know," agreed Samantha.

Later, at home, I noticed Linda was already in the death notice and her funeral is set for Saturday morning at nine am. The wake is Friday from four to eight.

"Do you plan to attend to that?" asked Dad.

"Yes, I liked her," I replied. "I was shocked when Samantha told me about Linda's death after school."

On Saturday, I was sitting with Samantha and Marci during the funeral. Linda was going to be cremeted according to the paper and then, she will be buried in Hartford where she grew up before coming here after her marriage. She wanted to be buried next to her parents who died not long before she got married. They were both sick. She and her husband were dating at the time back then.

A week later, I was told her husband decided to take over like he always wanted to do. He's nice, so I was glad about that. It would be on the same days and same times and Bingo would continue, so he would be the new Bingo caller.

Meredith and I still had fun as sisters. We became closer than ever now. And now, we're best friends!

The End


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